Heavy vehicles are still exceeding the speed limit on highways and getting away with it.
It is depressing that lives are lost due to speeding heavy vehicles on the highway.
This week, a car was crushed by a lorry at the Yong Peng-Pagoh stretch of the North-South Expressway at night. A 74-year-old woman and her 53-year-old daughter were killed when their vehicle was crushed by the undercarriage of a lorry. The older woman’s brother and three grandchildren were injured.
The car had apparently slowed down as vehicles in front had stopped due to an accident earlier. The 10-tonne lorry carrying fish crashed into the back of the car, pinning it underneath the lorry. The car was dragged for 12m. The lorry driver must have been speeding and could not stop in time when he saw the car slowing down.
Many heavy vehicles are speeding on highways. Many car drivers have had close shaves with these vehicles that impose themselves on highways.
It is high time that we put a stop to these speeding heavy vehicles. What happened to the “speed limiters” that were to be installed on heavy vehicles? Why do we have to wait until next year for the devices to be installed?
What happened to the flashlights that were installed on top of buses and lorries to deter them from speeding? Bring back the flashlights because they were an effective deterrent in the early years. Many heavy vehicle operators were against them because they affected their business. To the operators, fast and quick delivery translates to big profits. They fail to realise that it can cost the lives of innocent road users.
The longer we wait to implement these foolproof devices on heavy vehicles, more accidents and lives will be lost because of speeding heavy vehicles.
Samuel Yesuiah, Seremban, Negri Sembilan